Q.
Is it permissible to celebrate Mawlid? What is
meant by the "Days of Allah" and does Mawlid fit into this
category?
A.
For the first
part of the question, please read Islam Online's fatwa
in favour of Mawlid An Nabwi answered by Shaykh `Atiyyah
Saqr, former head of Al-Azhar Fatwa Committee and Shaykh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi
In regards to
the second part of your question, I suggest you read this
article compiled from various sources by As-Sayyid Ibrahim M.
Quadri.
Ibn Taymiyyah, Ibn Rajab,
Ibn Jawzi & Ibn Kathir on "Mawlid un Nabi"
Hafiz Ibn Kathir and Qadi Shawkani writes that: "the Days of
Allah' refers to the day on which Allah Almighty has done a
favour on mankind. For example, the freedom of Banu Isra'il
from the slavery of Fir'awn" [Ibn Kathir,Tafsir Ibn Kathir;
Qadi Shawkani, Fath al-Qadir]
Friday is a special day for Muslims because this is the day
that Allah created Prophet Adam (alaihis salaam). [Muslim,
'Book of Jumu'a'; also Ta'rikh Ibn Kathir, vol.1, 'Story of
Adam']
Hafiz Ibn Kathir writes that Abu Lahab freed Thuwayba on the
day that the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) was born.
[Ibn Kathir, Sirat an-Nabi, 'Birth of the Prophet']
Hafiz Ibn Kathir wrote that: "There was once a King, Abu
Sa'id Malik Muzaffar - a man of good deeds. In his kingdom,
wherever he saw a lack of water, he would build a well. He
also established many Islamic study centres. Every year, he
would spend half a million dinars on hosting a gathering of
his people to celebrate the birthday of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu
'alaihi wa aaleh) [Ta'rikh Ibn Kathir, vol. 13, 'Story of
King Abu Sa'id']
Muhammed ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab writes: "Thuwayba, who was the
freed slave of Abu Lahab, fed Rasolallah milk. Abu Lahab freed
Thuayba at the time when she informed him that a son has been
born at his brother's house. After the death of Abu Lahab he
was seen in a dream, in which he said 'I am in severe
punishment but this is lessened on Mondays'. He showed his
forefinger and said 'I will suck from it because it was with
this finger that I freed Thuwayba when she informed of the
birth of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh), and
she also fed the Holy Prophet milk'.
Ibn Jawzi states: 'Abu Lahab is that kafir who has been
specially referred to in the Qur'an. If such a person can be
rewarded for celebrating the Mawlid of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu
'alaihi wa aaleh), then imagine how great the reward would be
for a Muslim when he celebrates it' [Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab,
M., Mukhtasar Sirat ar-Rasul, 'Milad an-Nabi']
The above is evidence that celebrating the birthday of
the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) in the form of
a gathering is permissible. Otherwise Hafiz Ibn Kathir would
not have referred to it as a good deed and Hafiz Ibn Taymiyya
would not have said that there would be a "big reward" for
doing so. Some people have the opinion that King Abu Sa'id
introduced the celebrating of this occasion. This is not true
because Hafiz Ibn Kathir states that in the 5th Century after
hijra (AH), a king named Malik Shah also celebrated it with a
gathering [Ta'rikh Ibn Kathir, 'Biography of Malik Shah']
Some people even argue that the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi
wa aaleh) was not even born on the 12th Rabi' al-Awwal. This
argument is baseless as Hafiz Ibn Kathir has discussed this in
Sirat an-Nabi. He states that the majority of the scholars
agree that the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) was
born on the 12th of Rabi' al-Awwal. The evidence of the
people who do not accept this is weak [Sirat an-Nabi,
vol.1, 'Birth of the Prophet]
Muhammed ibn Ishaq (r) states that the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi
wa aaleh) was born on the 12th of Rabi' al-Awwal. [Sira Ibn
Hisham, chapter on 'Birth of the Prophet']
Ibn Ishaq (r) was a Tabi'i and was
born in 75 AH. His book is the oldest book available on Sira
in Islamic history. The first book of Sira was written by
Musa ibn 'Uqba. This book is no longer avaiable for
reference: "The Ahlus Sunnah celebrates the Mawlid of the
Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) with love and
respect. If someone does not celebrates it, we do not call
them a kafir because the matter of Mawlid does not affect the
Aqidah of a person. The celebrating of this should not cause
any divisions among Muslims".
Hafiz Salah ad-Din Yusuf (a great follower of Hafiz Ibn
Taymiyya and Shaykh an-Najdi) writes: "On the birth date of
the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh), to give
charity to the poor or to build a masjid - we agree in this
type of celebration of Mawlid" [Yusuf, Salah ad-Din,
Mawlid-un-nabi, page 92]
Hafiz Ibn Kathir writes: "On the day of the birth of Holy
Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) Shaytan cried a lot"
[Ibn Kathir, Sirat an-Nabi, 'Birth of the Prophet']
From Ibn Kathir's narration we can see that to feel unhappy on
the birthday of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh)
is the way of Shaytan, not the way of a Muslim!
Imam at-Tirmidhi writes: "Abdullah ibn 'Abbas (r) was
reciting the third verse of SurahMa'ida from the Qur'an. A
Jew, sitting close by, heard it and said to 'Abdullah, 'If
that verse which you recited was revealed to us, we would make
that day an 'Eid day'. 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas replied, 'When
this verse was revealed, there were two 'Eids on that day.
One of them was the Hajj day and the other Friday" [at-Tirmidhi
, 'Tafsir'; and also Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Surah 5, verse 3]
Ibn al-Jawzi wrote a book called "Mawlid an-Nabi" in which he
gives very strong proofs permitting the celebration of Mawlid.
Ibn Taymiyya states: "As to what some people have innovated
either to compete with Christians on the birth of `Isa u or
for the love of the Holy Prophet (saws) and veneration for
him, Allah might reward them for their love and ijtihad."
[Iqtida' al Siratul Mustaqeem, Al hadeeth
print, p. 266]
As far as we are concerned, we commemorate the Mawlid for no
other reason but what Ibn Taymiya said, "Out of love and
veneration of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh)."
May Allah reward us according to this love and effort, and may
Allah bless the one who said, "Let alone what the Christians
claim about their Prophet, and you may praise Muhammed (sallallahu
'alaihi wa aaleh) in any way you want and attribute to his
essence all honors and to his status all greatness, for his
merit has no limits that any __expression by any speaker might
reach." [Imam al-Busayri]
Imam Ibn al Jawzi said about the honorable Mawlid, "It is
security throughout the year, and glad tidings that all wishes
and desires will be fulfilled."
Ibn Kathir said in his 'Tarikh' [History]:
"He [Caliph Muzaffar] used to celebrate the noble Mawlid in
Rabi` al-Awwal and organize huge festivities for it. He was a
wise king, brave, a fierce fighter, intelligent, learned, and
just. May he have mercy on him and ennoble his grave. Shaykh
Abu al-Khattab ibn Dihya compiled for him a book on the Mawlid
of the Prophet (s) an named it 'al-Tanwir fi Mawlid al-Bashir
al-Nadhir' [The Illumination Concerning the Birthday of the
Bringer of Glad Tidings and Warner] and the king rewarded
him with 1,000 dinars for it. His rule lasted until he died in
the year 630 [Hijri] as he was besieging the French in the
city of Acca [Acre, Palestine] after a glorious and blameless
life."
Ibn Kathir says in "Dhikra Mawlid Rasul Allah", on page 19:
"The Night of the Holy Prophet's (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh)
birth is a magnificent, noble, blessed and holy night, a night
of bliss for the Believers, pure, radiant with lights and of
immeasurable price."
Imam Al-Hafiz Ibn Al-Jawzi, said in the description of Mawlid:
"Peace and Tranquillity takes over during that year and a good
glad tiding to obtain your wish and inspiration".
Ibn Tay'miah said in his book "Necessity of the Right
Path", p. 266, 5th line from the bottom of that page,
published by Dar Al-Hadith, the following: "As far as what
people do during the Mawlid, either as a rival celebration to
that which the Christians do during the time of Jesus Christ's
(alaihis salaam) birthday or as an __expression of their love
and admiration and a sign of praise for the Noble Prophet (sallallahu
'alaihi wa aaleh), Allah will surely reward them for such
Ij'tihad". He then said: "Although Mawlid was not practised
by most (Salaf), they should have done so since there was no
objection against it from the Shari'ah point of view".
Allah's greatest favour on mankind was the birth of the Holy
Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh). This means that the
Mawlid of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) is
one of the "Days of Allah", therefore we should remember it.
Hafiz Ibn Rajab writes that: "It is recommended to fast on
those days on which Allah Most High has sent blessings on us.
The greatest favour which Allah Almighty has bestowed us with,
is the sending down of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa
aaleh). Allah Most High says in the Qur'an: 'I have favoured
you among nations and sent to you a Prophet from among you'
[Ibn Rajab, ltaa'if-ul-ma'rif, page 111]
The Holy Prophet's uncle al-`Abbas (r) composed poetry
praising the birth of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa
aaleh), in which are found the following lines:
"When you were born
the earth was shining
and the firmament barely contained your light
and we can pierce through
thanks to that radiance and light and path of guidance"
[Suyuti's, Husn al-maqsid, Ibn Kathir's Mawlid, Ibn Hajar's
Fath al-Bari]
Ibn Kathir mentions the fact that according to the Sahaba (r),
the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) praised his own
name and recited poetry about himself in the middle of the
battle of Hunayn in order to encourage the companions and to
scare the enemies. That day he said: "I am the Prophet!
This is no lie. I am the son of `Abd al-Muttalib!" [Ibn
Kathir, Dhikra Mawlid an-Nabi]
The Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) was therefore
happy with those who praised him because it is Allah's (swt)
order, and he rewarded them from what Allah (swt) was
providing him by praying for them and giving them gifts. Ibn
Qayyim al-Jawziyya relates that the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi
wa aaleh) prayed that Allah (swt) support Hassan ibn Thabit (r)
with ruh al-qudus (the Divine spirit) as long as he would
support the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) with
his poetry.
Similarly, the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh)
rewarded Ka`b ibn Zuhayr's (r)poem of praise with a Robe/Cloak
(a Burdah). Hasan ibn Thabit (r) recited this poetry about
the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) on the day of
his death saying:
I say, and none can find
fault with me
But one lost to all sense:
I shall never cease to praise
him.
It may be for so doing I shall
be
forever in Paradise,
With the Chosen One for whose
support in that I hope,
And to attain to that day I
devote
all my efforts.
[Ibn Hisham, notes to his Seerah, p. 797, Karachi,
Oxford Press.]
Ibn Kathir's, Al bidaya wal nihaya and Dhikra Mawlid
Rasulillah, "Paradise and the skies were decorated and angels
moved about in continuous processions, the palace of Chosroes
was shaken and the fire of 1000 years ceased to burn." All
these events happened on the night and within the moment of
the Holy Prophet's (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) birth. So,
it is not `eid on a particular day, but it is a universal
blessing from Allah (swt) to humanity, for which reason its
commemoration is needed.
He was the most honored and perfect creation that Allah (swt)
created as a servant, and raised him by putting his name with
His Name, elevated him on the night of the ascension and
revealed to him the Holy Qur'an. If Allah's (swt) creation
rejoiced at the advent of the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi
wa aaleh) on the day of his birth, what about us, for whom his
birth is the greatest favour, and the means by which we were
granted the religion of Islam? Is it not illogical to say, "We
must not rejoice on that day," when all heavens and all
creations were doing so, in the most auspicious manner?
Muslim narrated that, "Abi Qatada (r) said that the Holy
Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) was asked about fasting
on Monday and he said `That was the day I was born." This
hadith is clear evidence of the importance of the
commemoration of the Holy Prophet's (sallallahu 'alaihi wa
aaleh) birthday through worship.
Al-Hafiz ibn Rajab al-Hanbali, in his book Lataif al-Maarif
(p. 98), in explaining this hadith of Muslim said, "It is
good to fast on the days that Allah (swt) honored and favoured
his servants." It is incumbent not only on Muslims but on all
human beings to rejoice in his advent, the day of his birth.
Al-Hafiz ibn Rajab al-Hanbali said, "The best favour that Allah
(swt) has granted this nation is the birth of Holy Prophet
Muhammed (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) when he was sent to
humanity. So we review and recall Allah's (swt) favour of
sending the Holy Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) by
fasting on that day."
Thus, commemoration of the Holy Prophet's (sallallahu 'alaihi
wa aaleh) birthday by any form of worship, starting with
fasting, was derived analogously by the great scholars of
jurisprudence, who concluded that all forms of worship
according to the Qur'an and Sunnah are meritorious to perform
on that day. This includes recitation of Qur'an, loudly or
quietly, individually or in congregation, praising the Holy
Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aaleh) is amongst the most
meritorious forms of worship, feeding people, charity and
remembering Allah (swt).
